Duterte: Value freedom won at EDSA People Power revolution

DAVAO CITY, Philippines — While he skipped the celebration of the 33rd anniversary of the people power revolt, President Duterte urged Filipinos yesterday to cherish the freedom won at EDSA in 1986.

“I am hopeful that this occasion will inspire all of us, especially the younger generation, to deeply value the freedom and liberty that we won in EDSA,” the President said. “May we all have a profound sense of appreciation and understanding of what we lost and what we reclaimed.”

He said the anniversary should remind Filipinos of the power of their votes as the 2019 midterm elections draw near.

Duterte pointed out that the bloodless revolt against dictatorship restored the Filipinos’ power to chart the country’s future through an election.

“As the entire nation prepares for the upcoming midterm elections this May, let us always remember how this historic revolution restored our power to collectively chart our future through the ballot,” the President said in his message.

Duterte was not scheduled to attend the ceremonies at EDSA. He attended the 1st National Assembly of the Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City yesterday afternoon.

“Let us never forget the sacrifice of those who came before us so that we may always be motivated to preserve and protect the democratic way of life that we enjoy today,” he said.

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo earlier said Duterte’s decision not to attend the EDSA rites had nothing to do with his relationship with the Marcoses.

“The President has been working tirelessly, including on weekends,” Panelo said in a statement last Sunday.

Panelo maintained that Duterte would be “in union with the celebrators as well as in recognition and reminder to all that our government is a fruit of democracy.”

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra yesterday rebutted claims of the opposition and critics that freedoms of Filipinos restored in EDSA 1 are being threatened and undermined under the Duterte administration.

“We Filipinos continue to enjoy the liberties that we regained after the People Power revolution in 1986… Our government institutions function with vibrancy under a democratic regime,” he stressed in an interview.

The military vowed yesterday to continue fighting for the values and principles of the bloodless revolt that removed a dictator from power.

“We will continue to imbibe the lessons of nationalism, patriotism and most importantly, unity,” Armed Forces of the Philippines public affairs office chief Col. Noel Detoyato said.

National Capital Region Police Office chief Director Guillermo Eleazar estimated the crowd at 1,500 that attended the event from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. yesterday.

At least 2,000 policemen were deployed to secure the event.

As of 3 p.m. yesterday Eleazar sent his anti-riot squads home.

‘Unfinished revolution’

The commemoration of EDSA is not about politics but about the two million Filipino heroes who took to the streets during the 1986 revolution.

“These are the real heroes. The countrymen. Nameless, faceless and colorless. No yellow, red, left or right,” EDSA People Power Commission chairman Pastor Saycon said in English and Filipino.

Saycon added in an interview yesterday that EDSA happens where the people gather their strength, full of hope and for progress.

Human rights group Karapatan agreed, saying they have not forgotten to honor all the martyrs and victims of the Marcos dictatorship.

But Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People chairman Bishop Ruperto Santos yesterday noted that Filipinos have forgotten that the success of EDSA happened because of God.

“We regained our freedom. It was because of God. It is so sad that God is set aside,” Santos said.

CBCP Episcopal Commission on Mission chairman Bishop Arturo Bastes said young Filipinos should never forget the events that happened on Feb. 25, 1986, which resulted in the nation’s liberation from the dictatorship of former president Ferdinand Marcos.

“Feb. 25 must be remembered as one of the shining glories of our nation,” Bastes said.

Emeritus Novaliches Bishop Teodoro Bacani called EDSA an “unfinished revolution.”

“We, especially our leaders, have reverted to our self-centered ways. We need a revolution of the heart that will make us truly say ‘God first, nation before self and family’,” Bacani said.

The people of Mindanao remain “powerless” and suffer from “helplessness” under President Duterte’s martial law, opposition senatorial candidate Samira Gutoc said.

“People power is people powerlessness in Mindanao under martial law,” Gutoc, who hails from Marawi, said.

Meanwhile, more than 20,000 job opportunities were up for grabs at the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)’s Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan job and business fair in Mandaluyong City yesterday.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said local and overseas jobs comprise the vacancies offered by 50 participating employers and recruitment agencies at the 2nd Floor Activity Center of Starmall on EDSA-Shaw.

DOLE had reported employment prospects in the construction and business process outsourcing industries.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has reported that 12,000 job orders would be offered by 15 recruitment agencies, for health and service companies abroad.

For his part, former senator Juan Ponce Enrile maintained that EDSA People Power 1 should be commemorated on Feb. 22 and not Feb. 25.

“Feb. 22 is important because it is the cry of EDSA. That was when we bet our lives. That was when we gambled our lives for the benefit of the country,” Enrile said in a radio interview yesterday.

“On Feb. 25, 1986, the fighting was over, that is why the president of the Philippines stepped down. He left for Hawaii and the new president had taken her oath,” Enrile said. – Alexis Romero, Edu Punay, Michael Punongbayan, Romina Cabrera, Non Alquitran, Rhodina Villanueva, Evelyn Macairan, Helen Flores, Sheila Crisostomo, Jose Rodel Clapano